Divine Regurgitation
I know the title of this blog is "Intentional Encouragement," and I plan to end this on an encouraging note, but I was teaching this past Sunday on some doors to consider in the New Year when a passage struck me once again as it does every time I read it. The main point was the door of fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ and with our Heavenly Father.
As I pursued what it takes to really enjoy fellowship with the Father, I talked about the words spoken to the church in Laodicea in Revelation chapter 3. In the 20th verse, the church is told "I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth."
If you are a follower of Jesus, I suspect that one of your desires in this New Year is to give some consideration to your relationship with God. Would you remember please that moderation is not something God wants from you in your walk with Him? Apathy makes God sick. Lukewarm Christians make God want to spit up.
How do I know if I'm lukewarm? My desire for prayer...my desire for taking in the Scriptures...my desire to build into the lives of the people around me...my desire to see the mission of Jesus accomplished in this world are all aspects of discipleship. If they are not on the increase; if I am satisfied with where I am in my walk with God, then I am lukewarm. It's not a matter of how far I've come in my knowledge of God or of the Bible. It's not a matter of how many church services I've attended in the past year. It's how passionate I am about the things of God...how much I want to see his fame and glory spread through my life.
I want to be a believer who is white-hot in my passion for God and my desire for Him to be glorified in my life. I don't want to get stuck in the "this-is-good-enough-I-don't-want-to-get-too-crazy" mode that too seems so common today.
Is this all that difficult? I am convinced that it is considered by God to be the norm. His grace is sufficient to save me from my sin. That same grace is sufficient to light a burning passion for His glory in my heart that won't quit. There is the encouraging part. It begins with a desire and a prayer to God to ignite a fire in your soul this year that will cause you to burn brightly for God, reflecting his glory to everyone around you.
Maybe you want that but you aren't sure how to pursue it. Start with the desire and ask God to direct your steps as you connect with several other brothers and sisters in the Lord to pursue a wholehearted commitment to Jesus.
I read that D.L. Moody once said "the world has yet to see what God could do with a man completely surrendered to Him." Let's make that our aim this year. Let's press on with our whole heart to passionately pursue the one who pursued us in the first place for His glory.
As I pursued what it takes to really enjoy fellowship with the Father, I talked about the words spoken to the church in Laodicea in Revelation chapter 3. In the 20th verse, the church is told "I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth."
If you are a follower of Jesus, I suspect that one of your desires in this New Year is to give some consideration to your relationship with God. Would you remember please that moderation is not something God wants from you in your walk with Him? Apathy makes God sick. Lukewarm Christians make God want to spit up.
How do I know if I'm lukewarm? My desire for prayer...my desire for taking in the Scriptures...my desire to build into the lives of the people around me...my desire to see the mission of Jesus accomplished in this world are all aspects of discipleship. If they are not on the increase; if I am satisfied with where I am in my walk with God, then I am lukewarm. It's not a matter of how far I've come in my knowledge of God or of the Bible. It's not a matter of how many church services I've attended in the past year. It's how passionate I am about the things of God...how much I want to see his fame and glory spread through my life.
I want to be a believer who is white-hot in my passion for God and my desire for Him to be glorified in my life. I don't want to get stuck in the "this-is-good-enough-I-don't-want-to-get-too-crazy" mode that too seems so common today.
Is this all that difficult? I am convinced that it is considered by God to be the norm. His grace is sufficient to save me from my sin. That same grace is sufficient to light a burning passion for His glory in my heart that won't quit. There is the encouraging part. It begins with a desire and a prayer to God to ignite a fire in your soul this year that will cause you to burn brightly for God, reflecting his glory to everyone around you.
Maybe you want that but you aren't sure how to pursue it. Start with the desire and ask God to direct your steps as you connect with several other brothers and sisters in the Lord to pursue a wholehearted commitment to Jesus.
I read that D.L. Moody once said "the world has yet to see what God could do with a man completely surrendered to Him." Let's make that our aim this year. Let's press on with our whole heart to passionately pursue the one who pursued us in the first place for His glory.
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